The Clothing genre of body armor offers more of a balanced defenses against magic and weapon attacks compared to heavy armor. They are also the largest class of body armor and can be equipped by all jobs except for the Paladin, Dragoon, and Defender.

Shields are one-handed defensive equipment that can be used with a one-handed weapon (or a two-handed weapon with the ability Monkey Grip). They can be used by the Soldier, Paladin, Warrior, Sage, Fencer, and Mog Knight jobs, as well as anyone with the Shieldbearer S-Ability.